My biggest problem with Christianity

God had to destroy a small amount to save the many. God is angered by the rejection of those he chose to give such great material and spiritual blessings to. They turned their back on god, so he turned his back on them. Kind of like a spanken; you don't want to have to spank a child, but must do it in order to protect the child from making a worse mistake. It happened many times and continues to happen today. God wants us to willingly love and worship him, who wants to be loved by someone who is forced to love them? 
 
You must wholeheartedly dedicate yourself to the study of God's Word and allow Him reveal Himself to you, not try and make him who you want him to be.

 

It's not at all defeatist. Christianity is eternal life in a perfect world after this evil one is destroyed. That's victorious, not defeatist.

 

Simple: it's fiction


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Why does god need/want our love? Wholeheartedly submitting to something you believe in without evidence is like enslaving your own mind...

 

One of the Commandments-'Thou shalt not kill'
 
God has some s'plainin' to doooo....smh

 

 
lol, how can you deny evidence you've never had your mind opened to? if you're so smart, then explain to me where knowledge comes from? why wouldn't a father want his children to willingly love him? your truth is just that and dies with you, because only absolute truth lives on beyond our small speck of life here.
 
you won't understand until you pull your head out of where the son don't shine.
 
start in genesis, study every day, end in revelation and repeat. then let me know what The Word says without the influences of other's "ideas"

 

Off the bat i am no bible basher but curiosity made me look into why God commands the Hebrew people to kill and it's for the same reason the Earth was flooded, fallen angels breeding with human woman, the Nephilim which were the giants referanced to in the bible, interesting stuff actually

 

That's not weed bro

 

A Moral Problem-the slaughter of the Canaanites (Josh 6, 8, 10).

Israel was commanded by God to completely exterminate the Canaanite inhabitants of the land including men, women, and children. This has been called a primitive and barbaric act of murder perpetrated on innocent lives.

Several factors must be kept in mind in viewing this situation. (1) There is a difference between murder and justifiable killing. Murder involves intentional and malicious hatred which leads to life-taking. On the other hand, the Bible speaks of permissible life-taking in capital punishment (Gen. 9) in self defense (Exod. 22:2), and in a justifiable war (Gen. 14). (2) The Canaanites were by no means innocent. They were a people cursed of God from their very beginning (Gen. 9:25). They were a vile people who practiced the basest forms of immorality. God described their sin vividly in these words, “I punished its iniquity, and the land vomited out its inhabitants” (Lev. 18:25). (3) Further, the innocent people of the land were not slaughtered. The story of Sodom and Gomorrah clearly demonstrates that God would save a whole city for ten righteous people (Gen. 18:22f.). In that incident, when God could not find ten righteous people, He took the four or five righteous ones out of the place so as not to destroy them with the wicked (Gen. 19:15). On another occasion God saved some thirty-two thousand people who were morally pure (Num. 31:35). Another notable example is Rahab, whom God saved because she believed (cf. Heb. 11:31). (4) God waited patiently for hundreds of years, giving the wicked inhabitants of Canaan time to repent (cf. 2 Peter 3:9) before He finally decided to destroy them (Gen. 15:16). When their iniquity was “full,” divine judgment fell. God's judgment was akin to surgery for cancer or amputation of a leg as the only way to save the rest of a sick body. Just as cancer or gangrene contaminates the physical body, those elements in a society-if their evil is left to fester-will completely contaminate the rest of society. (5) Finally, the battle confronting Israel was not simply a religious war; it was a theocratic war. Israel was directly ruled by God and the extermination was God's direct command (cf. Exod. 23:27-30; Deut. 7:3-6; Josh. 8:24-26). No other nation either before or after Israel has been a theocracy. Thus, those commands were unique. Israel as a theocracy was an instrument of judgment in the hands of God.

 

Evidence? What evidence?
 
I don't claim to be smart. I'm actually quite stupid.
 
I used to be a deluded Christian like you. I was raised very strictly in the tradition of the church and I studied the Bible and Christianity for a few years, so I understand where you're coming from. Recommending an atheist to read the bible is not the best idea, because there's some pretty fucked up shit in there and a lot of convoluted, antiquated, backwards barbaric nonsense.
 
You need to understand that the Bible was written thousands of years ago by people who knew so little in comparison to what we know now in the modern world. Your entire religion is outdated.
 
You claim to be so open-minded. Religious people rarely are because when they do open their minds, it's scary because of the prospect that their religion may not be the right one... Just remain in the safety of your own denial lol.

 

 
By saying we know more now, you agree with God's Word -" But you, Daniel, keep this prophecy a secret; seal up the book until the time of the end, when many will rush here and there, and knowledge will increase."
 
I agree we have moved forward in leaps and bounds as far as worldly and carnal knowledge, but the morals of the world are quickly approaching a new low for humanity.
 
The only way to find the truth is to go against everything that YOU think and that YOU believe and humbly accept that there is absolute truth out there - it's found in God's Word. Forget the religious organizations and all the interpretations of what people BELIEVE that the Word of God says, you have to just do it for yourself and find out what God wants to tell you.
 
It doesn't matter if you believe or not, either way He has a place for you....and you're not going to like it.

 

 
 
Love the cancer anology.

 

That's funny, because today's science is just now discovering what has been said in the Bible thousands of years ago.

Religious people are more open minded than you think. You don't sound very open minded yourself when you attack a person instead of defending your belief.

And what kind of "fucked up shit" is there in the Bible? There are perfectly good reasons or explanations as to why some things had to be done.

You need to understand that evolution was also taught thousands of years ago. So your argument there is pointless.

 

Im willing to engage in a debate my friend.

My contention is, one cannot both believe the Bible is the true word of God and believe Jesus is the accurate representation of this God.

For example

Exodus 15:3 The Lord is a man of war, Yahweh is his name


Galatians 5:22-24

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

 

I Sam 15:3 Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy all that belongs to them.
Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.

Isaiah 9:6 ... Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace

 

The amalekites attacked the Israelites without cause (Ex. 17:8). God ordered saul to do it 300 years later after the first attack from the amalekites (Sam 15: 2-3). Gave them plenty of time to repent.

There is always purpose behind the justice from God.

You also have to remember that we are not under the Old Testament law anymore since Jesus came and took away our sin. So things done in the Old Testament were done under old law. In the New Testament we were taught to love and have forgiveness because we are all guilty of the same thing. Hence why Jesus said "he who is without sin cast the first stone"

 

If someone did something to the people you love, would you not get revenge on them? If you had the power to justly judge a man of his doings in a wrong or right situation, would you not do what God does?

Being of compassion, love, forgiveness, etc. but also not letting people take your kindness for weakness. So when harm was done to his people of course he was going to get his revenge to what was done.

I think a perfect example of Jesus being God in the flesh is when Jesus is at the temple and goes crazy knocking over tables because of what they're doing there. He had seen many detestable things from the people of the world but that crossed the line.

Norse, you are the first person to actually come back with something and I thank you. You have my full respect.

If you don't come at religion with an open mind you will never fully grasp what it is. Those who say christians or religious people can't be open minded is a pretty funny saying. To understand God you have to have an open mind. No way around it.

 

Thats the tricky part the Bible says

'Eye for and eye, tooth for a tooth'

'Blessed be the merciful, for they shall receive mercy'

'Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the Sons of God'

'Turn the other cheek'

'Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, "VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY," says the Lord.'

The animalistic part of me would want to seek my own revenge, as the character Yahweh would. However Jesus teaches the opposite.

Ill be back in a bit, and ty for your kind words

 

The old testament law is in effect, the only difference is we have forgiveness now through Jesus. The ten commandments is the law and it's still in effect. don't believe me? go take a spear from some aborigine tribal warrior and see if he knows it's wrong. If you steal are you not a thief?
 
Jesus didn't mean don't give the thief due punishment here on earth, but he still has a chance to REPENT. Everyone does until their dieing bed. Take the thief on the cross.
 
Jesus never claimed to be God but to only be the Son of God. He never calls himself God, and gives credit to every healing and parable to have come through His Father through the Holy Spirit. Jesus was God's emotions here on earth, when he came in the flesh, because God himself could not dwell here. If God was here he would have destroyed everything because he cannot be in sin, much light light can't be in darkness. That's why we got jesus, who now blocks the father when he wants to wipe everything out, reminding him of the people who thought he was important enough to have a relationship every day with him; jesus is proud to call those who love him for what he did his friends.
 
Open up the book and shut your mouth!